Sellout crowd sees Proctor hold off Notre Dame in boys basketball

The renewal of an old Central Oneida League basketball rivalry packed a sold-out Notre Dame High School's Michael Walsh Gymnasium to the rafters Friday night, and it was Thomas R. Proctor High School's Raiders who held on for a wildy-entertaining, 65-62 Tri Valley League victory over the Jugglers.

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Uticaod

Posted Jan. 10, 2014 at 9:27 PM

Posted Jan. 10, 2014 at 9:27 PM

The renewal of an old Central Oneida League basketball rivalry packed a sold-out Notre Dame High School's Michael Walsh Gymnasium to the rafters Friday night, and it was Thomas R. Proctor High School's Raiders who held on for a wildy-entertaining, 65-62 Tri Valley League victory over the Jugglers.

Tyvon Reed and J'von Evans scored 19 points each and Clifton Tracey added 16, including four straight 3-pointers in the second half, as Class AA Proctor – 5-0 in the league and 7-2 overall – grabbed sole possession of first place in the TVL.

Joe Sullivan, a Notre Dame junior who last season was a sophomore reserve at Proctor, led the Jugglers (4-1, 9-2) with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Jerome Brabham and Kevin Warmack added 11 and 10 points, respectively, but both Notre Dame starters fouled out in the fourth quarter – Brabham with 7:27 left and Warmack with 4:42 remaining.

Led by Sullivan, the Jugglers still battled back, cutting a 13-point Proctor lead to one in the final minute. But Proctor's Daquan Testamark scored a rebound basket with 36 seconds left for the Raiders and Evans, who had missed five straight free throws, made two foul shots with 14.2 seconds remaining.

It was the first boys basketball game between Proctor and Notre Dame since 2003, when the Raiders cruised to victory in the finals of the 30th annual Juggler Classic. The teams meet again Tuesday, Feb. 11, in their regular-season finale at Proctor's Michael J. Arcuri Athletic Complex.

Notre Dame led only briefly, 3-0 and 3-2, before Proctor opened up a nine-point lead in a first quarter that ended with Anfernee Reed feeding Testamark for a two-handed dunk at the buzzer.

The Raiders, up by as many as 12 points in the second quarter, took a 32-27 lead into halftime and they ended the third period with D'Sean Mack draining a 3-pointer from just inside halfcourt at the buzzer, giving Proctor a 49-40 advantage.

Three-point plays by Tyvon Reed and Evans made it 55-42 in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. The Raiders, trying to milk the clock, did not score again until there was 4:32 left to play. Tracey ended the drought with a pair of 3s, but Notre Dame hung around thanks to back-to-back 3s by Sullivan and Cal Schaaf.

Proctor's lead was 61-58 when Tracey's tip-in with 52.5 seconds remaining was nullified by an over-the-back foul. Sullivan converted the 1-and-1 free throws to make it 61-60, but after two missed foul shots by Evans, Notre Dame failed to capitalize and Testamark made it 63-60 with his offensive rebound and basket.